Remember Sergio Goycochea? While all the hype was around Diego Maradona in the 1990 World Cup in Italy, it was the little-known goalkeeper who became a household name once No. 1 keeper Nery Pumpido got injured during the group stages.
It was Goycochea’s penalty-saving heroics in the quarters and semis against Yugoslavia and Italy respectively, that took Argentina to the World Cup final where they lost narrowly to Germany.
Emiliano Martinez, who saved three penalties on Tuesday to take Argentina to the Copa America final, has a similar tale to tell.
Just as Goycochea’s career turned around due to an injury to Pumpido, Martinez suddenly came to the limelight last year after Arsenal’s Bernd Leno injured himself during the Premier League game against Brighton post pandemic.
Spending 10 years as a journeyman goalie during different loan spells, Martinez suddenly was called upon and he was the standout player for the Gunners in the last phase of the extended 2019-20 season.
He was brilliant in the FA Cup final win against Chelsea and was also under the bar as Arsenal won the Community Shield tie-breaker against Liverpool. But with Leno coming back from injury, Arsenal couldn’t guarantee him a first-XI spot and that led to his transfer to Aston Villa for the 2020-21 season.
It proved to be a game-changer and Martinez was brilliant for Aston Villa that forced the Argentine coach Lionel Scaloni to give him a starting spot in June 2021, 10 years after his international debut.
On Tuesday, his unique style of sledging the Colombia penalty-takers as they came to take their shots proved crucial.
He got into their heads, psyched them out and forced weak shots out of them which he saved --- diving to his left, making Argentine fans time travel 31 years to that night in Naples when Goycochea stopped Italian penalties at will.
Martinez, who may not have even started at the Copa America had River Plate 'keeper Franco Armani not tested positive for Covid-19, said there was no stopping Argentina now.
Goycochea, after the World Cup, was part of Argentina’s Copa triumphs in 1991 and 1993. One would hope a similar fairytale is in store for Martinez (and Leo Messi’s Argentina) as well.
